Illini Tom

Just wanted to stop in to say good game. You guys are clearly the better team, and you deserved to win. We are simply not good or mature enough yet to capitalize on opponents’ mistakes, and that’s what good teams do. :( Also, just wanted to say that your fans were great and the traveling was impressive! I’ll certainly be rooting for USF from here on out. However, for those who even care, I have to take issue with the characterization of Chicago RE: college football. Chicago isn’t “Notre Dame country.” It CERTAINLY isn’t Northwestern country, as they are probably outnumbered by most other Big Ten schools. Illinois has 220,000+ alumni in the Chicago area, and the next closest Big Ten school is around 40,000. Notre Dame has great support, but it’s mostly concentrated in the SW suburbs. The Tribune does a poll every year, and it usually comes out like this: 30% Illinois 20% Notre Dame 5% Northwestern ~45% Other During good seasons (like our 2007 Rose Bowl run), the city bleeds orange and blue, the Sears Tower is lit up in orange and blue, etc. There is one reason that crowd was so bad: we have one of the worst BCS records in the entire country over the past 20 years. Win 2 games enough times, and your fans will stop showing up. Good luck the rest of the way, and I hope those who traveled had fun in Chicago!